As he was taken from the court, the defendant turned to the Magee family and said: "I am sorry for your loss".

Mr Magee was found stabbed to death just outside the home of his girlfriend, Courtney Ward, in the Summerhill Park area of Twinbrook in May 2015.

Ms Ward had been married to Koca, and they had three children together.

A prosecution barrister said that Koca had recently separated from Ms Ward and had searched social media for evidence that she was seeing other men, confronting her on occasions.

The barrister said Koca was "an aggressive man in that context".

Image copyrightPacemakerImage caption
Orhan Koca admitted killing the boxer in a knife attack in May 2015

An examination of Koca's phone had shown that he had saved copies of Facebook photographs of Ms Ward with her boss at work, and also with Mr Magee, with whom she had formed a new relationship after they met at a local gym.

Mr Magee went outside Ms Ward's home early on 30 May 2015 to look for a delayed pizza delivery man when he was attacked and murdered by Koca.

The court heard that Mr Magee died as a result of six stab wounds to his chest, abdomen and thighs, described as "multiple and significant injuries".

A defence barrister told the court that Koca's eventual guilty plea was motivated by the recognition of the "undoubted and overwhelming tragedy he has visited on the family of Mr Magee".

He said that witnesses had described him as a quiet and private man who was heartbroken by the failure of his marriage to Ms Ward.